Lawyers representing refugees in the St Peter's Square homeless camp vow to continue fighting for their rights after a court granted Manchester City Council a possession order, allowing it to evict residents. The ruling came after a hearing where the council argued that it had fulfilled its statutory duties under homelessness law.
Lawyers representing refugees at the St Peter's Square homeless camp have vowed to 'pursue cases where there is a statutory homeless duty owed to people living there'. The Greater Manchester Law Centre (GMLC) issued the statement after a court granted Manchester City Council a 'possession order', effectively allowing it to use bailiffs to evict residents from the red tents around the town hall.
A day-long hearing yesterday (February 10) heard the camp became a 'revolving door' as new refugees moved in after previous residents were housed by authorities. Kuljit Bhogal KC, representing the council, said in court: “It’s simply not right to say the statutory duty has been bypassed.” His Honour Judge Nigel Bird ruled the refugees — considered trespassers in law — must remove their tents: “For all those reasons I have come to the conclusion there's no basis I can order direction in regard to the unrepresented defendants. I therefore order the unrepresented defendants give up possession of St Peter's Square and I will make an order accordingly.' He added: “St Peter’s Square is a public amenity. It stands at the heart of the city and its amenity in my judgment is available for all. I am comforted each of the defendants, named or otherwise, is within part seven of the system and I am confident the system will move forward.” The GMLC has said it will continue to fight for homeless people in court. A spokesperson said: “This case concerned whether the council was entitled to seek possession of the land in St Peter’s Square from a homeless encampment. “Greater Manchester Law Centre acted for one of the defendants, arguing that the council had not complied with its statutory duties under homelessness law and therefore should not be able to seek possession of land until they had. In the course of the hearing, the council decided they no longer sought an order for possession against him. “Between the hearings of January 13 and February 11, GMLC made representations on behalf of 18 of the homeless people sleeping in St Peter’s Square to the council, leading to 15 offers of accommodation, including for the defendant we represented. “The council submitted that they had, since the hearing of January 13, made progress with their statutory duties under homelessness law to those staying in St Peter’s Square. That was sufficient to persuade HHJ Bird to grant possession at the hearing of February 11. This means that the council can now apply to the court for bailiffs to attend. “We commend the work undertaken by community organisations in Manchester to support people who have been given no option but to sleep rough, but this should always be in addition to statutory services. “GMLC will continue to support the homeless in Greater Manchester and will pursue cases on behalf of those without accommodation where there is a statutory homeless duty owed to them.” Jade Macdonald, chair of Greater Manchester Tenants Union’s south and central branch which has campaigned for the residents, added: 'The ruling yesterday has done nothing to fix the issue of homelessness in Manchester. “This just feeds into the council's attempts to make the problem less visible. Manchester is in desperate need of more social housing. The high priced developments that we are repeatedly subjected to across Manchester will not fix these issues that so many of our communities face - unaffordable, inappropriate and expensive housing that leaves us all at risk of street homelessness.' What Manchester council says Town hall bosses have also issued their own statement following the hearing. A spokesperson said: “We welcome the decision to grant us a possession order for St Peter’s Square to bring the encampment there to an end. “For many months now there has been a fluctuating number of tents in this public space, occupied by people who are refugees who have been granted the right to remain the country. “We want to stress in the strongest possible terms that help is at hand for any Manchester resident facing homelessness. The Council’s homelessness service works hard alongside a fantastic network of voluntary and community sector organisations in the city to deliver that support. “In the case of refugees, we have provided advice and support and helped many to help themselves out of homelessness over the last year. “But throughout this period we have been clear with those camping in the square that this is not a safe, suitable or sanitary place from which to access this support. Nor does camping in a public space accelerate their homelessness application or gain them any other advantage. “We have had a number of issues in keeping the area safe, secure and clean - as we saw in the run-up to Remembrance Weekend and New Year’s Eve events – and delivering services from the nearby town hall extensio
HOMELESSNESS MANCHESTER COUNCIL REFUGEES COURT ST PETER's SQUARE
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